Chapter 8: The position of grandson should belong to His Royal Highness Yunwen
The coffin of Prince Zhu Biao is stored in Renzhi Hall. According to etiquette and convention, it will be buried after seven or forty-nine days of chanting by many eminent monks from the day of condolences.
Of course, there is no need to worry about anti-corrosion issues. Ancient anti-corrosion technology was still very strong, especially in the royal family.
Even in later generations, the ancient antiseptic technology has great enlightenment for future generations, and even some techniques that have been passed down are still in use since before Zhu Ying traveled through time.
The corpses of emperors in the middle and late Ming Dynasty could even be stored for three months without decaying.
The prince's life is seventy-seven and forty-nine days, and the emperor's life is ninety-nine and eighty-one days.
There are also strict regulations in accordance with etiquette and law.
As for why it needs to be stored for so long.
Mainly because of the slow spread of information throughout the world, especially in ancient times, perhaps after the death of the emperor or the death of the prince.
It will take at least more than a month for it to spread throughout the Ming Dynasty.
If he was buried within seven days like ordinary people, many descendants of the royal family would not be able to express their condolences in time.
Second, the subjects of the Ming Dynasty, or the officials in some remote areas, did not even know that the prince of the Ming Dynasty had passed away.
Isn't this going to be a joke?
The same is true for the emperor.
Although many of the regulations in etiquette and law may seem a bit cumbersome and strict, to some extent they were also influenced by the social structure at that time.
In the empty and silent funeral palace, Zhu Yunwen's eyes were sad, and his whole person seemed to be in a state of confusion.
Of course, this is true. It does not mean that he is acting, but he is indeed very sad about the death of his father Zhu Biao.
Zhu Biao has two wives.
The first was Chang, the eldest daughter of Chang Yuchun.
In the Ming Dynasty, it was important to have a well-matched family, so the prince's wife must naturally have a noble family.
However, after giving birth to Zhu Yunxi, Chang became ill due to the sequelae of dystocia.
The Lu family was formerly the crown prince’s second concubine and was from a small family.
As a member of a small family, the Lu family was chosen as the crown prince's second concubine naturally because of her extremely beautiful appearance.
Compared with the Lu family, the Chang family is obviously much different in appearance.
Zhu Biao naturally treated his first wife with respect, and he doted on his second concubine, Lu.
After Chang died of illness, Zhu Biao asked his father, Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang, to appoint Lu as his stepwife.
Children are valued more than their mothers, so Zhu Yunwen, who was originally a concubine, naturally became a legitimate son.
The direct descendants do not descend to concubines, so those born to the Chang family and those born to the Lu family are both legitimate sons.
After the eldest grandson Zhu Xiongying passed away, Zhu Yunwen became the eldest grandson.
As for Zhu Yunxi, life was not easy.
The concubine's mother died of illness when she was born, and she lost her biological mother when she was young, so she was raised by the Lu family. Prince Zhu Biao was also relatively simple about her, neither disgusting nor loving her.
As for the eldest grandson Zhu Xiongying, he was personally raised by Empress Ma and Zhu Yuanzhang until his death. Even the Crown Prince Zhu Biao and the Crown Princess Chang could only visit him.
Since weaning, she has been living and growing up with Empress Ma and Zhu Yuanzhang.
Zhu Biao's character is relatively Confucian, and he emphasizes kindness and generosity. This is also related to Zhu Yuanzhang's teachings, because he knows that no matter how big a country is, it will perish if it is warlike.
Therefore, he hoped that his son would not be a horse-riding emperor like him, but could manage the country with peace of mind.
In this aspect, Zhu Yunwen is very similar to his father Zhu Biao, and Zhu Yunwen's appearance is very similar to his mother Lu's, so Zhu Biao likes her very much.
As a result, Zhu Yunxi's situation became very embarrassing.
As the grandson of the emperor, he just lacks some favor, so he will have no shortage of fine clothes and food.
However, under such circumstances, especially after the death of the eldest grandson Zhu Xiongying and Zhu Yunwen becoming the eldest grandson, the only person who can threaten Zhu Yunwen's future position is Zhu Yunxi.
Because in legal terms, Zhu Yunxi was the former legitimate son, and even after Zhu Yunwen became the legitimate son, there was no distinction between the succession rights of the two people to the throne.
When Mrs. Lu was taking care of Zhu Yunxi, she would inevitably have to put more thought into it.
It is difficult to raise a child to be a pillar, but it is extremely easy to raise a child to be a waste.
Although not very thorough, he was no longer liked by Zhu Yuanzhang.
Now that the prince has passed away, it seems that the Lu family has become the winner with the last laugh.
...........
"Brother Daoyan, you are a fake monk. I haven't seen you for a few years. You have gained a lot of weight. You must be living a comfortable life with King Yan."
In a certain courtyard, opposite Yao Guangxiao, a middle-aged man dressed in Confucian clothing said to him with a smile.
"How can I compare to brother Zicheng? After all, I am just wasting my time in Buddhism."
Yao Guangxiao smiled and replied, as for Huang Zicheng, he no longer calls himself a poor monk.
Yao Guangxiao became a monk in Miaozhi Temple in Suzhou when he was young. He was proficient in the three religions and had good relationships with academic leaders of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism.
Among them, he studied with Song Lian, Huang Zicheng's master, for a period of time. Although he did not enter Confucianism, he was still a disciple, and he and Huang Zicheng were barely the same disciple.
Huang Zicheng was a bachelor of Hanlin and studied at Donggong. He had always been Zhu Yunwen's teacher and they had a close relationship.
After a brief exchange of greetings, Yao Guangxiao stood up and bowed: "It seems that I want to wish brother Zicheng a successful career."
Huang Zicheng was slightly startled and said immediately: "Brother Dao Yan, what do you mean?"
Yao Guangxiao feigned anger and said, "Okay, brother Zicheng, you have to hide this from me."
After finishing speaking, he quietly looked around and whispered: "The prince has passed away, and the country cannot be without a heir for a day. It is said that His Highness Yunwen is very popular with His Majesty. I will make him a grandson in the near future."
After hearing this, Huang Zicheng couldn't help but take a step back and whispered: "Brother Daoyan, don't say this nonsense, be careful of disaster coming from your mouth."
Yao Guangxiao said with a nonchalant look: "In my great Ming Dynasty, if there is a direct descendant, there will be no direct descendants. If there is no direct descendant, the elder brother will eventually become the younger brother."
"His Royal Highness Yunwen is not young anymore, and now he is always with His Majesty. If I don't make His Highness Yunwen the grandson, who else can I make him?"
After Huang Zicheng paused slightly, a smile broke out on his face, and he said with some pride: "Sure enough, Brother Daoyan has seen clearly, but your Majesty has not made a decision yet, and everything is still unknown."
"Sooner or later, it seems that no one can compare with His Highness Yunwen." Yao Guangxiao said with certainty.
Upon hearing this, Huang Zicheng did not reply again, but he obviously recognized Yao Guangxiao's words and was relatively confident.
At present, His Majesty has only two choices, either from among the princes or from among the emperor's grandsons.
The prince, according to the order of succession, is naturally the second son, King Qin Zhu Fang.
The emperor's grandsons are Zhu Yunxi and Zhu Yunwen.
It is basically impossible for the King of Qin Zhu Xi to be. Since he was recalled to the capital last year, his position as vassal king is considered good if he has not been deposed. Your Majesty will not decide on him no matter what.
Of course, it is also possible to depose the King of Qin because of his inconsistent moral character and replace him with King Zhu Fan of Jin.
However, although Zhu Fan was a good fighter, he was too cruel and had a bad reputation.
Although he was loved by Zhu Yuanzhang, he was not an excellent candidate to be crown prince.
Zhu Di was quite good, with a good reputation and military exploits.
It's just that it's too far back.
There are two older brothers in front of him, so it is not Zhu Di's turn to succeed no matter what, although Zhu Di feels very competitive with him.
So after all this calculation, Zhu Yuanzhang actually had no choice at all.
The position of grandson belongs to none other than Zhu Yunwen.